Grace Revealed
by Regularamanda
Summary: What if Jack and Sam had talked after 'Grace? Sam and Jack.
1. Feelings Tucked Away

**Set after **_**Grace**_

**Feelings Tucked Away**

Major Samantha Carter sighed. Finally after being in the infirmary for a few days, Janet had released her.

She'd been so confused when she was on the ship. And the hallucinations that she had had. She blushed remembering the kiss that she had imagined with Jack O'Neill. Yeah like that was ever going to happen. He was her CO. And it really wasn't conducive to have day dreams like that. Major concussion or not.

And then she'd called him 'Jack' when she woke up. He'd been shocked that was certain. And she had been pretty embarrassed. Of course he wasn't her hallucination from the ship. He was the real Jack. The one she couldn't have. A small part of her had wanted to stay on the ship, even if he wasn't real.

Sam shook her head to clear her thoughts. No she shouldn't be thinking like that, it would only cause herself pain.

*****

'_Hey.' 'Jack.' 'Excuse me?'_ Nice going O'Neill she was missing for four days you could have given her a break Jack thought to himself. And for crying out loud she had suffered a massive concussion, he should have been thankful she remembered who he was at all. It had been a knee jerk reaction he had realized. Hearing her name on his lips…it did things to him, things that he knew he shouldn't feel.

Jack sat in Carter's lab playing with a yo-yo and trying not to concentrate on the female to whom it belonged…and failing miserably.

"Sir?" The sudden voice asked.

"Oh uh Carter didn't realize you were up and around yet." Jack said jumping up as she walked in the door.

An awkward silence passed between the CO and his 2IC.

"Sir I wanted to talk to you." She said stiffening slightly.

"Oh?" Jack asked raising his eyebrow. They didn't do that…talk that is. They only skirted around issues that related to them.

Carter swallowed nervously and continued. "Sir I know three years ago we agreed that our feelings would not leave that room but…um…wow this is hard…I just…I want…"

Jack started shifting nervously. This is so not what I though she wanted to talk to me about he thought. "Listen Carter…where did this come from?" He asked confused.

"When I was on the ship sir I realized what I want, what I've wanted for years in fact. I want…"

"Uh Carter this is flattering and all" Jack said interrupting her. Please don't say what I think your going to say he thought. "But that was three years ago and a lot has changed and uh I just think we've both moved on." Lying through your teeth O'Neill Jack thought to himself.

A flicker of light slowly died in Carter's sparkling blue eyes but she continued. For her own peace of mind she needed to know this. "Sir you must have realized how much I've admired you over the years." Hero worship that's all it was he convinced himself.

"Sure Carter but we're friends and there's regulations." He said as he moved to fumble with one of her doohickeys.

"What if I resigned?" Carter asked as she moved to stand beside him.

You're sure as Hell not going to give up your career for me Jack thought to himself.

"Carter I think it's a good idea for us to put this." He said waving his hand around the room. "Behind us and just forget this ever came up." Jack finally looked her in the eye.

"Are you sure?" She swallowed the lump in her throat.

"Yeah."

"Wow do I feel like an idiot." Sam said as she looked at the floor.

"Hey Carter it's okay. We're good." Jack said as he patted her shoulder and shot her his Jack grin, the very one that had made her fall in love with him in the first place.

Yeah Jack how the hell can you have moved on, when all you see is her? He asked himself as he walked out the door, leaving Carter to watch him go.

*****

Sam was calling herself all kinds of a fool. She practically threw herself at her CO and he obviously didn't feel that way for her anymore. She had been finally about to get some resolution to the…thing between them since the day they meet. But then she guessed she had gotten the answer to her question, he didn't see her like that anymore. Obviously all those years ago when he had said he cared for her more then he should, he had been able to make himself stop feeling those feelings for her. While her's had only strengthened, and had filled her heart so completely that she wasn't sure that she wanted someone who wasn't Jack O'Neill.

She wanted him, him alone and the incident on the Prometheus made her realize that she could have it if she wanted it. Just her hallucinations hadn't taken into account Jack having moved on.

For crying out loud Sam get over it! She lectured herself.

Sam sighed. She needed to do something to get her mind off her feelings for her CO. Maybe it was time to have Mark set her up on that blind date after all.

*****

Jack knew he had hurt her but it was for the best. Carter didn't need him, he was an old man for crying out loud!

She deserved someone who could give her everything she had every wanted. And Jack came with so much extra baggage. And he was so much older then her. She should have someone who hadn't seen what he had seen, who hadn't done the things that he had done.

That didn't mean he didn't love her though. He'd been in love with her from almost the start he thought to himself. They had started out as friends but it had quickly developed into so much more for him. Friend he thought with a sigh. Friends was all they'd ever be.

It wasn't like he could act on his feelings either. Carter was invaluable to the Stargate program, he would never let her give up that for him. No matter how much it hurt him. She was needed here far more then she needed him.

He wouldn't tell her how much he wanted her. He would keep that tucked away in the far reaches of his heart. But this incident had brought it closer to the surface then it had been in years and he wasn't sure what to do about that.

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_Author's Note- So this was actually the very first fic I wrote a few months ago and I looked at it again and fixed some things. And I remembered a prompt from the ficathon list on GW, so I came up with this idea. Thanks for reading and if you liked it let me know! Be warned I'm not sure if this turned out how I wanted it to so I may change this first chapter. This should be about 6-8 chapters long!_


	2. Oh What a Tangled Web We Weave

_Author's Note- After thinking it over in my head for the last week, I redid a bit of the first chapter, so before you read this, please go back and re-read the first chapter. I do agree that the characterization of Jack was off and that has been rectified. Also I forgot to say before that this is an Alternate Timeline/Alternate Reality fic, so things will be slightly skewed from what we know that happened._

_Edit- So...I forgot to replace the first chapter with the revised one...go figure! Sorry about that, it has been changed to the right one now.  
_

**Set after **_**Chimera **_

**Oh What a Tangled Web We Weave**

He knew only one thing, that she was humming. He knew what humming meant. It meant she was happy and she wasn't normally the kind of person that hummed.

After serving with her for 7 years he had never once heard her hum before. He knew deep down that she had finally gotten a life, but he still had asked. And his heart was the one that was paying the price.

He knew now that he had made the right choice in saying that they had both moved on. It had been the right thing to do. She had moved on. And it hurt him like hell but he was happy for her. He wanted her to be happy, even if it wasn't with him. And there was also a possibly that he had been wrong, maybe she had only been about to say that she was finally going to get a life.

Jack shook his head and kept walking. Maybe he hadn't moved on, but she sure had. He could kick himself right now for lying to her, if he would have just let her finish what she had been about to say…

*****

She liked Pete, she'd only gone on a few dates with him, but he seemed nice. He had followed her and he had gotten himself shot by Osiris, and she was sorry that that had happened to him. (Though she was a little creeped out that he had followed her in the first place.) Luckily though he was going to be fine.

She knew that Pete wanted to take their relationship to the next level, but she wasn't so sure about that. The conversation that she had hallucinated with Jack was still fresh in her mind, as well as the conversation that she had had with her father.

*****

Sam left Pete to get some rest in the infirmary and walked out the door, running straight into a pair of strong arms.

"Oh! Sorry sir." She said nervously.

"Its fine Carter…how's Pete?" He asked shifting from one foot to the other uncomfortably.

"He's going to be alright." She told him.

"That's good." Jack said brightly.

"Yeah it is."

"Listen, I'm happy for you, I just wanted you to know that." Jack said hoping she'd believe what he was saying, and half hoping that she wouldn't.

"I know sir." She assured him. Sam questioned though if she could ever be truly happy with someone who wasn't him. "I'm happy for you as well." She said as an afterthought.

"Oh, Thanks." Jack managed to say. There was an uncomfortable silence for a few moments. And Jack briefly wondered if she had any idea what she was doing to his heart right now. Having her boyfriend in that room. How he wished he was Pete.

But he wasn't. He was just himself. Someone who was nowhere near good enough for Sam. She deserved so much better then anything he could offer her.

He could tell her right now, that he loved her, wanted everything with her. But he didn't. With the regulations in place he couldn't say them. And even if he would, they'd mean nothing now. She had moved on and he couldn't burden her with his feelings.

"So, I see you finally followed my order." Jack said teasing her.

"Which one?" She said with a laugh.

"About getting a life. It only took you three years. You're lucky I don't like paperwork, I could have had you Court Marshall." He said jokingly.

" I guess I am lucky then sir. Though I'm not sure the Air Force would have given me a Court Marshall for that." Sam said with a small smile.

He chuckled and Jack knew that he might not be able to tease her anymore. He'd have to put some distance between them soon. But for the moment, he'd enjoy this with her.

*****

Sam smiled at Jack and his teasing but she wondered if he had any idea if he knew that she hadn't gotten a life…because she had only wanted a life with one man. Him.

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_Author's Note- Just as a note, in this fic, Sam sleeping with Pete never happened. Thanks for reading! Let me know if you liked it._


	3. Words Secretly Uttered

**Set after **_**Death Knoll**_

**Words Secretly Uttered**

_Jack and Teal'c ran through the woods, looking for some sign of Sam. They followed her footprints and with each passing step Jack became more and more agitated. The super soldier had been following close behind her if the footprints were any indication._

_And that was when they finally saw her. Jack sighed with relief that they had found her but the relief was shattered when he realized she wasn't moving._

"_Carter!" He yelled to her, as he jogged up to her._

_Oh God Jack thought and the world came crashing down on him. She was laying on the ground with an ugly wound to her Stomach. _

_She was dead. _

_Jack knelt down to her body and brushed the hair away from her eyes. Jack gently pushed her eyelids over her lovely blue eyes. _

"_I am sorry Colonel O'Neill." Teal'c said his voice sad._

"_Yeah." Jack knew that Teal'c was aware of his feelings for her, he'd probably seen it before either one of them realized it._

_This wasn't how it was supposed to end Jack thought as he lifted her lifeless body into his arms._

Jack's eyes shot open and he willed his heart to stop it's maniac beating. It had only been a nightmare. She had survived and right now she was in the infirmary. Jack took a few deep breath's to come his racing heart and got off his bed in his quarters. He had opted to stay here instead of going home. He needed to be near her. But right now he needed to see with his own eyes that she was alright.

*****

Jack quietly walked into the infirmary and he was thankful that it was 0200 hours in the morning.

He slowly walked over to Sam's side and watched her peacefully sleeping. She was okay, a few scraps but that was it. Jack's heart finally slowed its pace as he saw the rise and fall of her chest.

Jack glanced at her lovingly and was shocked her a moment when two blue eyes stared back at him.

"Hi sir." She whispered.

"Hey Carter, how are you doing?" Jack asked concerned.

"Alright…what are you doing here?" She asked confused.

"Just checking in on you." He admitted.

"Oh…Thank you sir." She said.

"You did good Carter." He told her as he sat down on the other bed next to hers.

"Thanks." Sam said smiling at him.

You're a fool Jack, he thought to himself. He could have easily lost her today and she would have left without the knowledge that he loved her.

He couldn't tell her that now. She was dating someone else. And Jack just couldn't bring himself to say the words that were on his lips.

"I'm glad that you're okay." He said smiling at her, knowing full well his feelings were written in his eyes.

"Me too." She said brightly and he chuckled at her.

"Now go back to bed that's an order Major." Jack said sternly.

Sam laughed but closed her eyes anyway.

She slowly drifted off and in a few minutes she was sound asleep.

Jack stayed by her side for a few more minutes and he looked around just to make sure no one was around. The security cameras weren't in this section he realized.

He got off the bed and walked over to her. He leaned down and kissed her forehead, letting his lips linger for a second longer then necessary. "I love you Sam." He whispered to her. And then he walked out of the infirmary.

*****

Sam waited a few minutes and then opened her eyes. He had finally said the words that she thought he'd never say. But she was supposed to be asleep and those words weren't meant for her to hear.

She fell back asleep with a small smile on her lips, knowing that when she got out of here, she had to make a phone call to a certain cop.

Jack loved her, and there was no way in Hell she was going to continue going out with another man, when her heart belonged to Jack.

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_Author's Note- Thanks for reading and if you liked it let me know! This is where the story takes a turn from what actually happened as you can see. _


	4. Life is too Short

**Set after **_**Heroes Part 2**_

**Life is too Short**

Sam stared at the grave marker not daring to believe that one of her closest friends was gone, Doctor Janet Fraiser. God how had everything gone so wrong so fast.

It had started out as a routine mission and then they'd been ambushed. Jack had went down and then so had Janet. Two people she loved, one as a best friend and the other…Sam sighed and wrapped her arms around her waist.

"I though I'd find you here." A sudden voice said from behind her. She didn't even bother turning around. She'd recognize that voice anywhere. Jack.

They'd had a memorial service for Janet at the SGC but SG-1 and Cassandra had flown to Arlington, Virginia so that she could be buried here. After all she had done for her country, for all the members of the SG teams, she deserved to be buried here.

Jack walked to her side with his hands stuffed in his pockets. Sam glanced at him briefly.

"They took Cassie to some of the Smithsonian's while we're here." Jack said answering her unspoken question.

Sam nodded her head in approval. There would be no joy in looking at what Washington had to offer but she knew that Daniel and Teal'c would at least try to get Cassie's mind off the painful lose that she had been dealt a few days prior.

"It's not going to be the same without her sir." Sam said.

"No. It's not." He said.

Sam's eyes filled with tears and she bit her lip to keep them at bay.

Jack glanced at her. "C'mere." He said as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

Sam didn't even bother trying to keep the tears at bay. She turned into his chest and wrapped her arms around his neck, hanging on for all she was worth.

They'd shared a similar hug a few days before at the SGC. But now, even though they were out in public, they had civilian clothes on, no one knew who they were. So she cried in his arms. Cried till she didn't think she had anything left in her. And he held her firmly with his arms wrapped around her waist.

She cried for all that SG-1 had lost…and what could have been lost. They could have been having two funerals here she realized. She was devastated about what had happened to Janet but if something had happened to Jack…it would have crushed her.

If that staff blast had been a few inches from where it was…if he hadn't been wearing the new inserts into his vest…

Sam wanted to hang onto this man and never let go.

She had broken up with Pete after what Jack had whispered to her. Sure he had thought she was sleeping but she had finally found out what she had always hoped. He loved her, and God help her, she loved him back as well. And though there wasn't anything they could do about it right now, it was enough. For the moment at least.

They stayed wrapped in each other's arms for a long time before Sam finally broke the hug.

"You alright?" Jack said as he wiped away a tear from her face.

"No." She whispered.

"Me neither." He whispered back

"We could have lost you too..."

"You didn't…I'm right here." He told her.

"Yes you are." She said with tears still swimming in her eyes.

"How about we go meet up with the rest of the guys?" Jack asked.

"Alright…but can we stay just a bit longer sir?" Sam asked, turned her eyes back to the grave marker.

Jack sent her a small smile and looked at the grave as well.

*****

They stayed there for a few minutes before they left. Each knowing that while Janet Fraiser's body lay there in that grave…they'd carry her with them forever. They would never forget all that she had done for them through the years, and their memories of her would last them a lifetime.

Life was too short, they realized. And each one of them hoped that maybe someday they'd be able to express what was in their hearts for the other.

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_Author's Note- Thanks for reading and if you liked it let me know!_


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